Platen.



BURIAEY PEARSONQOF WEST TERRE I-IA'UTE, INDIANA.

To all whom it mag concern:

' Be it known that I, Bonner PEARSON, a

citizen of the United States, residing at West Terre Haute, in the countyof vigo and State ofIndiana, have invented new-and useful Improvements in Platens, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to plastic block and earthenware apparatus, and more especially to reciprocating cutters; and the ob ect of the same is to produce a platen'made up of plates having irregular contiguous "edges producing sinuous guidesfor the'passage of the wires for cutting bricks, so as to provide the latter with ribs and grooves-for purposes well known in the art. I

The invention consists in the specific shaping of the edges of-the plates so as to avoid sharp anglesin said guides and the consequent abrupt deflection of the 'wires from their general line of progress, thereby minimizing the wear on the edges of the plates and on the Wires themselves and increasing the efiective life of parts.

Thefollowing specification sets forth the details of invention as applied to the uppermost of a pair of platens between which the clay is fed as usual, and in'the drawings which show only the platen.

Figure 1 is a planviewof several plates made upof sections, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one section, and Fig. 3'is a sectional view illustrating a slight modification.

As a whole, the platen herewith illustrated is made up of a number of platesv whereof one is designated A and another B in Fig. l, and each plate'is herewith shown as made in two sectionsl as' seen in Fig. 2. For the purpose of the present invention, it is immaterial whether the plate is inone piece or section, or in several, but in any event each plate of the lower platen will be mounted, on a suitable, bed or support,

whereas each plate of the upper platen will be mounted beneath and carried by a suitable support which is preferably hinged so that this platen may be raised as well understood in the art. For attaching the plates or sections to their supports, they are shown as provided with holes H through which suitable fastening devices such as screws may be passed. These details, as well as the materials of parts, the size and configuration of each plate, and the number of plates in a platen, are features of the brick machine rather than the cutter. The cutting Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Aug, 21, 1917,

Application filed December 7,1915. seen no. 65,586.

To produce guides for these Wires during their transverse movements, the several plates 111 each platen are spaced slightly along their contiguous edges andthe wires travel in said spaces. To produce ribs and j grooves in the opposite faces of the bricks being cut, the contiguous edges are made irregular as by forming a projection on one edge extending into a depression in the opposite edge. The wire in its passage'is deflected and caused to travel around such depression with the result thatboth the edge and the wire are worn, and the parts need replacing quite often. Heretofore, anti-friction rollers have been employed on the proj ections and the wire traveled over the outer sides of said rollers'through a path necessarily partof a circle. I find that this expedient is advantageous in several ways but objectionable in others, and the principal objection is that where the traveling wire strikes on the side of the roller it is deflected abruptly from a straight line rather than gently. Again, I find it desirable to produce bricks having an ogee irregularity on each side which would be produced by a projection and an adjacent depression in eachedge; and in order to cause the wire to travel through the sinuous path required to produce such an irregularity, and yet not make abrupt turns or angles throughout its path, I have adopted a construction best seen in the accompanying drawings. t

As shown herewith, each platen plate is made up of two sections 1 whose inner edges as preferred, or as above stated,the sections could be part ofa single plate, and we will thereforedisregard this detail. The several are shown in the drawings as duplicated at may ormay not be spaced from each other vided with two irregularities on each face,

or four irregularities in all. -,However-,- the number of irregularities and their exact disposition will depend upon the wishes of themanufacturer, and it is obvious that the platen plates may be removed from their supports and replaced by others when bricks having difierently disposed ribs and grooves are to beproduced. Theworking face of each proj ection is arcuate, beingby preference about ninety degreesof a circle as shown by the dotted diagran at the left ofFig. Land the working'face of the opposite depression 3 will of course correspond. The working faces of the next adjacent depression and projection are similar parts of the same circle but difierently disposed. It follows that the channel or guide 6 is straight where it passes between: the straight portions. of the contiguous edges, is arched or curvedas at 7 where it passes around one' depression, is oblique to the straight portion-6 where it passes between. the two arches 7 at the, midlength of this. irregularity as indicated at 8, and is then again, archedand finally straight throughout theremainder of its length asat 9 unless interrupted by another irregularity near the other end of the plate asfshown in the drawings. j a i With this construction awire entering the guide as shown by the arrow at 6 moves first straight forward, then is deflected through a gentle obtuse angleto, the right and travels overthe first arch. 7 thenv moves through, the oblique portion 8 and into and over the second arch 7 at. the left, whence it passes through a second gentle angle from this arch along the straight course 9; and throughout this movement it has encounteredjno abrupt angleswhereits course was suddenly. changed, and therefore excessive wear on the edges of the plate and onthe wire itself is avoided, and an ogee irregu larity has been produced on; the side of the stock. c I

In order tolengthen the life of-theparts still further, I preferably provide each plate on its outer side (which isthat face removed .from the clay stock) with; areinforcingaelement, the same being shown in; Fig." 2 as a lug 4:" cast integral with the projection 2, and in Fig. 3 as a separate element or block 5 preferably riveted ,upon, such projection.

In any event however, the reinforce has its outer wall coincident with the outer wall or wear face of said projection. As the latter is arcuate, the outer wall of the; projection must follow thesarne contour, although of course itcould be extended back onto the plate beyond the straight edge as seen at 4 in F ig. 2-in fact the shape of other parts of this element than its wear face is immate rial. No reinforcing element is necessary in conjunction with a depression 3, because the projection and reinforce on the opposite plate extend into this depressionand will receive the impact and wear of the moving wire... n

What is claimed as new is 1. In an, apparatusfor cutting brick clay,

a pair of platesspaced at their. contiguous edges to, produce a guide for a cutting wire, the edge" of each plate having an outcurved projection, and an adjacent inc'urved depression whose walls merge into each other on. a line oblique to thegeneral length of said edge, said irregularities mating with complementary irregularities on the contiguous plate and producing an ogee curve within the length of said guide. 1 1

'2. A platen. for the purpose set 'forth comprising a series ofplatesfiat on their inner sides and spaced at their contiguous edgesto producea guide for a cutting wire, every plate having at each edge irregularities consisting of adjacent proj ectionsand depressionswhose walls merge into each other on lines oblique to the general length of, said edge, said irregularities mating with corre sponding irregularities on contiguous plates, and reinforcing elements upon the outer sides of the plates overlying the projections thereof and havingwalls coincident with the walls of said projections. I j o In testimon 1 whereof I aflixmy signature in presence 0 two witnesses,

RoBnR'r' BENNETT, O. 'L. PEARSON.

Copies, of this patentmay -betbtaij ed tor fiveicents each,;by addressing the, Commissioner of Patents,

, Washington, DiCi 

